Please, tell me what political/historical books you've read recently......

[Minnesota Libra]

......and what you liked or disliked about the book. Also, please give me a short (sentence or two) run down on who/what the book is about. Am looking for some good political/historical reading material.

Thanks everyone:hug:

[CrazyOrangeCat]

1. Farewell to Justice . . .

by Joan Mellen. One of the best books on the JFK conspiracy that I've ever read.

It was a difficult read for me . . . the whole thing is like a keg of worms. Hard to keep track of all the names and places. But it was well-written and researched, and I'm glad I saw it through. It really exposes all the wild CIA stuff going on in NOLA in the early sixties.

On edit: I'm a big Ed Abbey fan too!

[Warren Stupidity]

2. Great War for Civilization; the Conquest of the Middle East.

Robert Fisk. Huge sweeping set of historical essays on the middle east. Great read.

[Faygo Kid]

8. That one is on my list.

Glad to hear you find it worthwhile.

[Terran1212]

43. Definitely amazing

[JeffR]

3. 1776

by David McCullough. What sticks is just how close a call it was that the United States of America ever happened. Washington's own mistakes, Congress's reluctance to spend money, the fog of war in the batlles in and around New York... an amazing read.

[ashling]

12. Great book!

[JeffR]

16. I'm hoping he'll follow it with a full history

Of the Revolution. It was so good I didn't want to reach the end.

[liveoaktx]

20. Heh, I like your picture-you remind me I got that book a while

back but haven't read it yet, got sidetracked by other current scandals.

[JeffR]

28. Drop everything and read it

Well, not everything. I know you've got other stuff to do. And thank you for it!

[Jara sang]

4. "The Master Plan: Himmler's Scholars and the Holocaust"

About Himmler's esoteric Germanic heritage organization the Ahnenerbe within the Third Reich. It's pretty fascinating.

Also recently read "War Made Easy" and "State of War", both good.

[Lisa]

5. "Bury the Chains"

It's the story of how a coalition of religious leaders and social activists worked to end slavery in the British Empire. It's more concerned with the British colonies in Africa and the Caribbean than with the US situation -- but what is especially interesting for today is that many of the techniques which were pioneered in the late 1700s for this cause (including leafletting, lapel buttons, lecture tours, celebrity spokespeople, and ethical product labels) were used for the civil rights, feminist, labor, environmental, and peace movements, right up to this day.

For such a sad time in history, it's got a hopeful ending (many of the campaigners lived to see their goal).

[CrazyOrangeCat]

7. That sounds really interesting. n/t

[Lisa]

23. it was! They even talk about chocolate ...

Some of the Quaker-owned chocolate companies, like Cadbury's, played an important role in the anti-slavery movement. The author remarked that one of the big challenges was to get the British public to feel concerned about people on the other side of the world whom they would never meet (and whom they had been conditioned to think were "inferior"). And slavery was pretty much unquestioned until then (not even the Bible argued against it). Yet they managed to get their point across -- people were actually giving up sugar, rather than get it from slave plantations. It makes campaigning against Bush look relatively easy, by comparison!

(this is a forerunner of the "ethical marketing" label ... advertises sugar not made by slaves)

[Lisa]

14. "All the Shah's Men"

This book traces the story behind the overthrow of the democratically-elected government in Iran, in the early 1950s, with the help of the CIA. We've gotten so used to hearing rumors about the CIA that it's almost a shock to see documentation about stuff they really did. Another interesting thing is that Americans enjoyed a lot of respect in Iran, even after the coup ... people viewed England as the colonial occupier, and really looked up to the US as a champion of freedom. They thought that the British had lied to the US, and tricked them into helping. I checked the book's details with some friends who are from Iran, and they gave it the thumbs-up.

A good follow-up is the graphic novel "Persepolis", which looks at the Iranian Revolution from a child's point of view.

[Jara sang]

27. I just got "Mohammad Mosaddeq and the 1953 Coup in Iran"

and "The Pinochet File" both put out by scholars from the National Security Archive. If you are interested in the CIAs involvement in the Iran coup of '53 you should try to find a book by Kermit Roosevelt he was Teddy's grandson and heavily involved in the CIA and that coup. The book is hard to find it's called Countercoup: The Struggle for the Control of Iran

[Lisa]

33. I house-sit for one of Mossadeq's relatives!

Those are the friends I mentioned -- I'll ask whether they've got it. "All the Shah's Men" mentions quite a bit about Kermit's role.

[Viva_La_Revolution]

49. Hochschild was on CSPAN2 a few weeks ago

One of the most concise and educational speakers I've heard
in a long time. Highly recommended!

[Faygo Kid]

6. Just finished "Team of Rivals;" now reading "1491"

"Team of Rivals" is the bestseller by Doris Kearns Goodwin about Lincoln and his cabinet. Tough to come up with much new about Lincoln, but her insights were excellent. I read history as the lives of real people like us only in a different era. These were indeed real people. I recommend it. Now reading "1491," about the Americas before Columbus' arrival. Fascinating. So much of what we assume is wrong. It's a real eye opener. Two good ones, here. Also reading "Slaves in the Family," about a white writer's search for his family's slave descendants. Also fascinating.

[ThomWV]

9. John Keegan - "The First World War"

How needless it all is.

[MoonRiver]

10. A People's History of the United States, by Howard Zinn

It is awesome! If only the facts outlined in this book were taught to students in high school. What we get is pure propaganda.

The book looks at class & race struggle throughout the history of our country from Columbus to Clinton. I'm now in the WWI era. We've been through much more oppressive times than now, believe it or not. The assault on free speech during WWI was breathtaking. Anyway, I highly recommend this book.

[ashling]

11. Freedom From Fear

Americans in the Great Depression and War, 1927 - 1945 by David M. Kennedy ... very good book. I am now reading Treason, a historical novel about Aaron Burr ... by David Nevin who wrote 1812 which I read some years back when it came out. All great books.

[liveoaktx]

13. Firewall- Iran/Contra affair

A very disturbing book, there are many, many parallels between how the Bush administration is acting now and what happened then. The issue wasn't resolved, the law-breakers got away with it, and I since so many of those involved THEN are involved NOW, they learned how to get around the govt then.

[Solly Mack]

15. Historical documents/Legal documents/Govt. publications count?

They're in book form. :)

If so, US CODE Titles 18 and 10, as it applies to/incorporates the War Crimes Act of 1996, a transcript of Nuremberg, and I'm rereading the Geneva Conventions.

I don't find it a dull read but some might. Read with a notebook handy as you will be making notes and referencing other laws/rules/regulations/treaties.

I'm putting together a case for charging the Bush administration with war crimes (for my own use)

[yorgatron]

18. "Burr" by Gore Vidal

it's about a vice-president who shot someone,can you imagine? :shrug:

[Solly Mack]

21. No way! Whoddathunkit? Wow.

lol :)

[ourbluenation]

17. Just started "crashing the gate" dkos's book. anyone esle read it?

[AnnInLa]

36. yup...what'd you think?

[ourbluenation]

44. I just started it...like 10 pages. So no op yet.

[Viva_La_Revolution]

50. It's the DU book club book for March

did ya know?
:)

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=209&topic_id=3479&mesg_id=3479

[jrw14125]

19. The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark - Carl Sagan

Great read, I highly recommend it. Sagan discusses the distinctions between real science and both anti-science (think ID advocates) and pseudoscience (think people who see the Virgin, or who see demons, or who believe in reincarnation or that they've been abducted by aliens). Pseudoscience, he argues, is generally practiced or chased by people who really want to believe the phenomena they claim to be scientifically studying, even though they generally are not versed in and do not employ the scientific method and other techniques or practices designed to yield honest and correct scientific results.

Historically, he discussed witch trials, the founding fathers (specifically Jefferson), the invention of the A-bomb and H-bomb, and other events that have impacted science, anti-science, and pseudoscience throughout history.

The last 2 chapters of this book were so sad and at the same time inspiring, where he discusses the scientific experiment that was the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, declaring independence and fighting off the royalists, etc. Funny, "conservative" then was almost exactly whet you think of them as now - they want monarchical control, practice narrow-mindedness like racism, and clamored for their religion to be the national religion.

[Minnesota Libra]

22. Thank you everyone - you are giving me some great material here...........

.....I should be busy for a few months with just this much.:pals: Thanks:headbang:

[JohnKleeb]

24. Ok

Truman by David McCullough, a great biography on one of the most underrated presidents.

I am going to start reading All the King's Men soon which I realize is fiction but based off of the Huey Long story in Louisanna and I'll also be starting Hope Dies Last, an autobiography by Alexander Dubcek who led the failed Prague Spring in 1968.

[INdemo]

25. An Unfinished Life, John F. Kennedy by Robert Dallek

Great book..Was well researched..Highly recommended

[CoffeeCat]

26. I just finished Robert Baer's "See No Evil: The True Story of a Ground...

Soldier in the CIA's War on Terrorism."

It was a riveting read. Baer explains in cogent, fascinating terms---why we are severely f*cked in the war on terror.

And we are.

The CIA relies too heavily on technology and lacks crucial "boots on the ground" that unearth the best intelligence.

I highly rec'mend this book to everyone on DU.

[Jara sang]

31. In "State of War" James Risen makes the same assertion.

We had virtually zero HUMINT capabilities in Iraq at the onset of the Iraq war, save for CURVEBALL.:rofl: That was a real jawdropper.

[Synnical]

38. I just began reading "Imperial Hubris"

The first chapter alone is fascinating. I have "See No Evil" in my que at booksfree.com (audio books, works the same as Netflix). Also, I would recommend Senator Bob Graham's "Intelligence Matters". Five stars - he's is one angry ex-Senator - unloads on this government and the intelligence community.

[Warren Stupidity]

45. Another of the great post 911 books.

[Lisa]

29. "Botany of Desire"

If you like food and/or gardening, this is a great read -- it mixes history and science in telling the stories behind some popular plants (apples, tulips, etc.). The author picks out a particular species, and uses it as a way to explore issues like bioethics, and what is meant by "civilization".

[eppur_se_muova]

30. Historical:"The Victorian Internet" (a quick read, but interesting)

Not really a "deep" book, but it does cover a lot of historical background I didn't know about. A couple of Brits, including Wheatstone, played a much larger role than I had realized (the author, Tom Standage, is British, so gotta show the flag). Shows lots of parallels to today's Internet, including the excessive optimism and pessimism about its impact on society. Worth reading to provide a grain of salt to go with today's predictions.

Ironically, at the time I was reading this, I saw in the news that Western Union had shut down its telegraph service (except for wire transfers, IIRC).

[Lisa]

32. "A Short History of Progress"

Just a plug for an author I know (Ronald Wright) -- this book takes an anthropologist's perspective, looking at human history since the Stone Age, and detouring through Mesopotamia, Central America, and the Mediterranean. He takes a more intimate view than Jared Diamond (Dr. Wright has a personal secret which, if his suspicions are true, would cause a great deal of excitement in biology, anthropology, and civil rights legislation).

At a local reading, one elderly woman stormed out because he'd criticized Bush's rationale for the Iraq War. This is a pity, because if Bush understood half of what was in this book, and did something about it, he'd build himself a reputation for being a humane visionary, and possibly saving us from extinction.

[Viva_La_Revolution]

54. You tease!

What's the secret??!

that's just mean.

[Lisa]

55. I guess you'll just have to read the book!

Or catch one of his lectures sometime. A hint -- earlier this week, some DUers were complaining about an ad campaign for the "Gieco" (or rather, "Geico") insurance company -- not the one featuring the gecko, though. They might have accidentally stumbled upon something ....

[LA lady]

34. "Rising Tide"

"Rising Tide" the great flood of 1927 and how it changed America.

It is incredibly readable and fascinating when compared to Katrina. The levess in New Orleans were dynamited.

"While tracing the history of the nation's most destructive natural disaster, Barry explains how ineptitude and greed helped cause the flood, and how the policies created to deal with the disaster changed the culture of the Mississippi Delta. Existing racial rifts expanded, helping to launch Herbert Hoover into the White House and shifting the political alliances of many blacks in the process. An absorbing account of a little-known, yet monumental event in American history, Rising Tide reveals how human behavior proved more destructive than the swollen river itself. "

[AnnInLa]

35. Currently reading Team of Rivals by Doris Kearns Goodwin

It's a big, fat one, but it is just fascinating. The parallels of political events in that time period to the events of day are really freaky. If you are one of those that fear/hope that history makes a circle, then this is the book for you.

Also read my advance copy of Crashing the Gate by Armstrong and Kos....wasn't as fascinating, but if you are planning to do grassroots political service, then this book is a must read.

[AnnInLa]

37. Can also recommend 2 books by David Brock:

Blinded by the Right and The Noise Machine are must reads to understand the modern repuke party and how they got so rePUKE, and why they remain so rePUKE.

Everyone thinks his/her book is the must-read, but either or both of these books by Brock (www.mediamatters.org) is a must-read.

I read the Kitty Kelly book and the Mo-do book too....they were hoots to read, enjoyed them like I enjoy eating ice-cream!

[Minnesota Libra]

39. I THANK EVERYONE who added to this list of books, there.......

......is a little bit of everything here. :headbang: I think you all :yourock: Thanks so much:woohoo:

[Monkey see Monkey Do]

40. "You Are Here" by Bremner, Bird & Fortune

I picked this up the other day for a quid and it's been a great little read so far (I've got about 40 pages left). The authors are political satirists (Bremner started out as an impressionist, the other two have been around since the sixties) but have been providing good - and fascinating - left-wing critique of Blair and the war on terror.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0752864939/

They've done three one-hour specials on Iraq (the last of which aired in January) which are available online and well worth checking out. You can get links to all three via here:

http://www.indybay.org/news/2006/01/1794821.php

random fact I learned from the book -- in 2002, the UK spent twice as much (£40 million) paying back the WW2 debt to the US than it did on reconstruction in Afghanistasn.

[lonestarnot]

41. Still working on Crossing the Rubican by Michael Ruppert

[Terran1212]

42. The Great War for Civilisation The Conquest of the Middle East

It's by Robert Fisk who has been reporting and living in the Middle East for the past 30 years.

He's seen all the big events of that era first-hand: Iran-Iraq War, Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, Gulf Wars, Bosnia, etc.

It's just different accounts of the horrible tragedy of the region and western complicity in it all.

And it's amazing; as Amy Goodman said, 'a tomb"

[rucky]

46. People's History of America - Howard Zinn

finally got to it! :)

[cynatnite]

47. Reading two books...

1)Hunting of the President by Joe Conason & Gene Lyons. It's a more expanded version of the documentary concerning those who tried to bring down Bill and Hillary Clinton. I like it, but it gets a little dry at times.

2)Misquoting Jesus by Bart Ehrman. Excellent book on how the bible has been copied and misquoted both purposefully and accidentally. It shows that the bible is no where near being the 'word of god'. I highly recommend it!

[Joe Fields]

48. Brittannica's "Annals of America"

It is a 26 volume set, so you had better have plenty of time to read them. But they are fascinating. First hand accounts of everything that happenned in America, from the time of Columbus on... Lots of letters by the founding fathers, Jamestown settlers, important businessmen, governors, average folk, anyone who was involved or witnessed any important event in our history....It is the most comprehensive accounting of our history that I've ever come across.

I really like it, because it gives you a great insight into the thought processes of the people that shaped our country.

[Roland99]

51. American Dynasty - Kevin Phillips.....Hegemony or Survival - Noam Chomsky

[Swamp Rat]

52. These are the texts I have read in the last few weeks:

In addition to the books, I have read dozens of peer-reviewed journal articles and hundreds of newspaper articles.

Durkheim, Emile. 1997. The Division of Labor in Society. New York: The Free Press. ISBN: 0684836386.
 
Geertz, Clifford. 1973. The Interpretation of Cultures. New York: Basic Books. ISBN: 0465097197.
 
Graeber, David. 2001. Toward an Anthropological Theory of Value. New York: Palgrave. ISBN: 0312240457.
 
Harvey, David. 1990. The Condition of Postmodernity. Oxford: Blackwell. ISBN: 0631162941.
 
Trouillot, Michel-Rolph. 2003. Global Transformations: Anthropology and the Modern World. New York: Palgrave MacMillan. ISBN: 0312295219.
 
Tucker, Robert C., ed. 1978. The Marx-Engels Reader. New York: Norton. ISBN: 0-393-09040-X.
 
Weber, Max. 1958. From Max Weber: Essays in Sociology. New York: Oxford. ISBN: 0195004620.

The titles pretty much describe the contents.

I have also read a few more books, but they concern GIScience, remote sensing, and GIS software.

I am a reading machine. :D

[Odin2005]

53. "The Clash of Civilizations," by Samuel Huntington.

The thesis of the book is that in the Post-Cold War world people will no longer identify themselves on ideological grounds but civilizational ones. States that are part of the same civlization will stengthen thier bonds (EU, Islamism), while relation between states of different civilizations (such as the US vs. Iran, the EU vs. Russia, and China vs. Japan) will increasingly deterioirate and states that stradle civilizations (Yugislavia, Ukraine, Nigeria, Sudan, Sri Lanka) would be torn apart. He also says that "torn countries", states that can't decide whether they want to be part of one civilization or another (such as Turkey and the Orthodox Christian Balkan states) will be eventually forced to choose sides. Huntington devides the world into 9 civilizations: Western (US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Catholic and Protestant Europe, and the Uniate Catholics of western Ukraine), Orthodox Christian, Latin American, Islamic, Sinic-Confucian (China, Taiwan, Singapore, Korea, Vietnam), Hindu, Japonic, Buddhist (Tibet, Bhutan, Burma, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Mongolia, parts of Sri Lanka), and African.

[Swamp Rat]

56. kick for reading

... eventhough most folks are probably watching their TVs right now.

Instead of watching OTHER PEOPLE play sports on Sunday, pick up a few books and LEARN something.

:kick:

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

57. "The Third Reich in Power", More and reviews follow:

"The Third Reich in Power" Somewhat dry, but very scholarly. How the Nazi's used their power.

"The Civil War" (Shelby Foote) Very enjoyable read. 3 volumes focuses on the battles and politicians on both sides.

"Mary Chesnut's Civil War", A day-by-day diary from Ft. Sumper to surrender. Mary Chesnut was the wife of one of the bigshots in the Confederacy and hobknobbed with all the players. She was very intellectual, writes well and with insight. She's also very human. Though she supported the South, she'd probably be a liberal today. She hated slavery and feared the slaves. A fascinating read, but difficult if you try to keep up with all the people mentioned. What it was like to be a well-educated, stultified, but real "southern belle".

"Voices from Slavery", Anyone who buys into the "happy slave" BS need only read these narratives by former slaves to have that illusion smashed.

"The Road to Disunion", The story of how the civil war came. Slavery was the issue. All the rest was (and is) cover for the southern landowning aristocracy to justify it.

"John Adams", A good read about a complicated man.

"1776". Another good read, but a little thin on details. Should be followed by more scholarly reads.

Many more. Being retired is heaven for ex-history majors with a hunger for understanding what really happened.